February 21, 2018

Heinrich wants prohibition on gun violence research by CDC to end

Following the latest mass shooting, one of New Mexico’s U.S. Senators wants to repeal an amendment that bars the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from researching gun violence and its impact on public health.

U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich announced his opposition to the Dickey Amendment Tuesday, saying that CDC research is necessary to help find solutions to curb gun violence.

“I am calling for the repeal of the Dickey Amendment because I am fed up with tragedies like the mass shootings in Parkland, Las Vegas, and Aztec,” Heinrich said. I am also heartsick over the estimated 91 Americans killed each day by gun violence.”

The Dickey Amendment, implemented in 1996, specifically stopped the CDC from using any funds to “advocate or promote gun control.” The National Rifle Association was a driving force behind the amendment at the time.

The amendment itself is gaining attention, as mass shootings have increased over recent years, and debate over why has no authority to look back on.

The actual amendment sponsored by Jay Dickey, a congressman from Arkansas, did not explicitly forbid research into gun-related deaths, just advocacy. But the Congress also lowered the CDC’s budget by the exact amount it spent on such research. Message received. It’s had a chilling effect on the entire field for decades.

Mark Rosenberg, the founding director of CDC’s National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, wrote in Politico that in addition to the amendment and the cut in funds, the agency director fired him, “the person most closely identified with the gun violence prevention research.”

Since then, the type of large-scale, independent studies on gun violence that could potentially provide answers and policy suggestions for Congress have not taken place.

“After every mass shooting, we are cautioned to wait for the facts before we act. Because of the Dickey Amendment, we don’t have the facts. Repealing the Dickey Amendment should be a no-brainer,” Heinrich said. “This is about using scientific information as our guiding light to combat the gun violence epidemic that is threatening our country.”

Heinrich himself was once a member of the NRA, though left the organization sometime before 2016. He received an “A” grade from the organization while a member of the U.S. House in 2010, then a “B” grade in 2012, when he ran for U.S. Senate.

Heinrich is up for reelection this year, a time when many Democrats are increasingly pushing back against the NRA. In the past, only those in the most-safely Democratic states vocally criticized the organization.

The nation’s opioid epidemic has been called today’s version of the 1980s AIDS crisis. In a speech Monday, President Donald Trump pushed for a tougher federal response, emphasizing a tough-on-crime approach for drug dealers and more funding for treatment.

The third time was not the charm. For the third time in just over a month, Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver rejected a Republican petition for a referendum to overturn the law that would require background checks for nearly all gun purchases.

Legislators are pressing ahead with a slate of gun control bills that would require background checks for virtually all firearm sales and add to the categories of offenders who would be prohibited from possessing a gun at all. Proponents argue these bills will close loopholes and help keep guns out of the hands of those who have committed violent crimes or are in crisis.

A new poll is the first to show Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s approval rating. And while the number of registered New Mexico voters who approve of her job performance outnumber those who do not approve, nearly one-third of voters had no opinion.

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed legislation Friday requiring background checks for virtually all firearm sales in New Mexico. The bill has been a priority for gun control advocates, who argue the measure merely closes a loophole in state law and will help keep weapons out of the hands of people barred from owning firearms.
But gun rights groups have argued the law will do little to prevent crime.

Holtec International was in the news last month when the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission denied requests from some groups to hold an additional hearing over the company’s license to build an interim storage site in southeastern New Mexico to hold nuclear waste from commercial power plants.

Matthew Reichbach is the editor of the NM Political Report. The former founder and editor of the NM Telegram, Matthew was also a co-founder of New Mexico FBIHOP with his brother and one of the original hires at the groundbreaking website the New Mexico Independent. Matthew has covered events such as the Democratic National Convention and Netroots Nation and formerly published, “The Morning Word,” a daily political news summary for NM Telegram and the Santa Fe Reporter.
Matthew has appeared as a panelist for the Society of Professional Journalists’ New Mexico Chapter’s panel on covering New Mexico politics and the legislature.
A native New Mexican from Rio Rancho, Matthew’s family has been in New Mexico since the 1600s.